Go
by LucyEverdeen28
Summary: Mickey knew that Rose and the Doctor had to go.  He had to stay, even if it broke his heart.  Rose had someone more important in her life, and she didn't need him.  *Mickey's POV during the ending scene of the Age of Steel.  Ten/Rose and mild Rose/Mickey*


**Well, here it is…I haven't posted any fanfiction for over a month now, I've been so busy with school starting up and other projects. But I've been wanting to write this scene from Mickey's POV and really get into his thoughts and what he was feeling during this time. It takes place at the Age of Steel, at the end where Mickey decides to stay. :) Please review. I don't own Doctor Who.**

He would leave them.

He would stay, and they would go.

It wasn't a split-second decision. Mickey had been watching Rose and the Doctor together. During the whole Reinette incident, he'd watched Rose's heart break. And even when the Doctor returned, she didn't toss out hurtful words or accusations, but backed off and gave him space. She still loved him.

They belonged together. Anyone could tell just by looking at the carefree couple. The way the Doctor slowly smiled at her, always eager for her reaction to whatever they were doing, the way her attentive eyes watched him as she listened to his longwinded ramblings.

Yup, even if they didn't know it yet, they were made for each other. And it only served to make Mickey feel awkward, like an intruder. At first he was just angry. Rose had been _his _girlfriend. People used to smile at the sight of him and Rose sharing a giggle, not the Doctor and Rose laughing hysterically at some inside joke.

He watched her, as time gradually went by. He watched the way she would sit next to the Doctor in the TARDIS, offering a listening ear or even just her presence. And they would recall memorable adventures together, laugh about old times, or even joke about the silliest things.

The Doctor definitely understood Rose. Mickey had to give him that. Her safety was the most important thing to the Doctor. He would do anything to protect Rose, and Mickey respected him for that.

So, the days passed and Mickey no longer became angry. Sure, he felt a twinge of regret sometimes. At what could have been. Him and Rose, together and happy. But he could no longer picture her without thinking of the Doctor by her side, they were so closely connected. Not having a life aboard the TARDIS with her Time Lord by her side? He knew that would break Rose's heart a thousand times worse than Reinette.

Mickey knew it. He couldn't stay any longer. Things were happening for the Doctor and Rose; this was an important time for them to grow closer and have their special time together, alone. This parallel world was the perfect place for him.

Not just so he could back out gracefully and leave the twosome alone, either. There was his gran to consider, he didn't want to give that up. And he felt that tug, that obligation, to replace Ricky and live up to what to the other man had been. If he couldn't have Rose, he wanted to live the best life possible, and he couldn't do that if he was always trailing behind her, waiting for her, and expecting her to do the same.

It was time to get some backbone. He could do this. Mickey swallowed and looked at Rose's face. She had just said goodbye to Pete and was swiping at her eyes, looking quite desolate. He watched the way her lips quivered, and she tried to press them together, to stay firm. It was hard to leave her. But he couldn't stay, not when the Doctor was the best thing that had ever happened to her.

"Off we go then!" Grinning broadly, the Doctor turned around, face all pleased, ready for the next death-defying adventure.

_Now or never. _Mickey cleared his throat and dove in. "Uh, thing is, I'm staying."

The Doctor's smile dropped as his eyes took on a look of astonishment. "You're doing what?"

"You can't," Rose spoke up, her voice quiet and wounded. She looked at him, as if hurt, not understanding.

He wished he could tell her not to fight it. This was the way it would be, and that was all. "It all balances out, 'cause this world lost its Ricky. But there's me. And there's work to be done with all the Cybermen still out there."

"But you can't stay." Rose shook her head, still resisting. Disbelief flashed across her face, eyebrows bending downward, as if she'd always considered him to be a fixture.

Mickey struggled for the right words. "Rose, my gran's here. She's still alive, my old gran, remember that?"

"Yeah," she squeaked out, tilting her head.

He was surprised that she was actually close to tears. "She needs me." He held up his hands as if to say there was nothing more to be said.

"What about me, what if I need you?" She looked him in the eye, voice still quiet, daring him to reply.

Mickey knew the answer to that one. "You don't." He looked at the Doctor, who was waiting wordlessly in the background, letting Rose cope with this in her own way. "It's just you and him isn't it? We had something a long time ago, but not anymore."

Rose smiled and lifted her head, eyes bright with unshed tears. "But we'll come back. We can travel anywhere and come see you, yeah?"

The Doctor cut in. "We can't. I told you, travel between parallel worlds is impossible. We only got here by accident, we, we fell through a crack in time. When we leave, I've gotta close it. We can't ever return."

Mickey felt stung. It hadn't really sunk in, that he would never see Rose or the Doctor ever again. But it didn't alter his choice. Rose was still special to him––the most wonderful girl he'd ever known––and even if she still cared about him, it was obvious it wasn't in the same way she cared for the Doctor.

Still adamant, he held out his hand and shook the Doctor's. He felt good. Glad to have known the Doctor, even if he had taken away Rose and torn apart his life. He didn't resent the Time Lord anymore. How could he resent someone who made Rose so happy?

"Take Rose's phone. It's got the code. Get it out there." The Doctor grinned, back to his usual self. "Good luck…Mickey the idiot."

"Watch it." Mickey swallowed a laugh and felt a surprising catch in his voice, as if he were going to cry. He turned to Rose, who was still staring at the ground. Sending a tender glance her way, the Doctor entered the TARDIS without looking back. Jake backed away to give them some space.

Mickey's eyes trailed across her face. She was so pretty in the evening shadows, her blonde hair falling across her shoulders and her round eyes welling up with a hint of tears. "Friends?" He cleared his throat. "We've been through a lot though haven't we? Seen a lot, been there, and back. Who would've thought, me and you, after all those days, flyin' through the stars?"

Her lips opened, closed, then opened again as she finally spoke. "All those years, just…sittin' there. Imagining what we'd do one day. We never saw this, did we?" Her voice broke and she seemed struggling to hold back tears. She looked at him, eyes asking for a hug.

He hugged her, one last time. Rose clung to him, and when he felt wetness on his shoulder he knew she was crying. That was okay. It felt good to know he was still important to her. But right now, she had a more important man in her life. "Go on, don't miss your flight."

Rose sniffled, pulling away, and looked at him wordlessly. Mickey saw an understanding, a calmness, in her eyes, as she nodded and strode off to the waiting TARDIS. Opening the blue door and stepping in, she threw one last glance at him and smiled. Then she turned to enter through the door, a light in her eyes as she stepped in.

Mickey wanted to freeze that moment, capture and remember it in his head. Rose, standing against the blue police box, offering one last smile to her old friend, and turning to meet the Doctor's gaze inside. He could just imagine the Doctor's penetrating eyes, checking to see that she was okay.

The TARDIS began to whoosh, starting to fade away. The sound washed through his ears. So many times hearing the TARDIS's whoosh had either lifted false hopes or broken his heart. "Jake, you'll wanna watch this."

Jake whirled around, rushing back as the blue box continued whooshing and slowly disappeared. "What the heck?"

Mickey forced a tight smile. "That's the Doctor, in the TARDIS, with Rose Tyler." He felt a burden lift from his chest. There. Things were as they should be.

He wondered what adventures awaited Rose and her Doctor as they traveled through time and space.

**Thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed! Leave a review. :)**


End file.
